Stepney (Thomas and Friends)
Railway Series= |-|Model Series= |-|CGI face= Stepney *'Number': 55, formerly 655, B655, 2655 and 32655 *'Class': LB&SCR A1X *'Designer': William Stroudley *'Builder': Brighton Works *'Built': 1875, rebuilt 1912 *'Gauge': 4 ft 8 1⁄2 in (1,435 mm) *'Configuration': 0-6-0T Stepney, named after a district in London, is a tank engine from the Bluebell Railway. He is Boxhill's brother. Bio In the Railway Series Stepney was built at Brighton Works in Brighton, England in 1875 as an LB&SCR A1 class engine and later rebuilt as an A1X in 1912. He arrived on the Bluebell Railway on May 17th, 1960, after the railway's founder Bernard Holden MBE helped to save the line for preservation. Stepney was the first engine to be rescued by the Bluebell Railway. In 1962, Stepney came on loan to Sodor and worked briefly with Duck at Tidmouth before working on Thomas' Branch Line, during which time he caught a cricket ball in a truck while passing the Elsbridge cricket field. Towards the end of his stay, he returned to Tidmouth and on his last day double-headed the Express with Duck after the Diesel failed. In June 2008, Stepney was withdrawn from service as his boiler certificate had expired. He has since had a fast-track overhaul so that he could be back in service for the "Bluebell 50th" gala in early August 2010. However, due to his "tired condition", Stepney was only being allowed to carry out light-duties. He was withdrawn from service in March 2014 and his current boiler certificate expired in April 2015. It's unknown if he will be given a major overhaul now that he has been withdrawn or will have to wait his turn in the Sheffield Park Engine Shed. In the Television Series Stepney was stranded on a siding in the scrapyard at the Vicarstown Goods Depot when Rusty found him and helped arrange for him to be put back into service. He now runs the Bluebell Branch Line. Stepney later wanted to have a change from his branch line and he was sent to help Toby and Mavis at Anopha Quarry. This excursion nearly ended in disaster after 'Arry and Bert tried to scrap Stepney, luckily without success, after Stepney accidentally ventured into the Sodor Ironworks. Stepney later helped Edward with the running of The Loop Line and was accidentally bumped into by Duck, who was looking at The Hot Air Balloon. He was last seen in the twelfth season, when he was hit by a truck of sugar in an incident caused by Rosie. Persona Stepney is a bubbly, honest and humble chap who is busting with enthusiasm. He is very eager to please and is every engine's friend. Even if an engine might not like him at first, his personality wins them over. After being saved from scrap by Rusty and the Bluebell Railway, he now runs his own branch line, but loves helping out on the Fat Controller's Railway. He has an enthusiasm for learning and listening to advice, as well as keeping busy. Stepney can feel down in the dumps if he does not get enough work to do or if he does not get a good long run to stretch his wheels. Stepney is high-spirited, lively and is keen to see fair play. He is popular amongst the engines and is always game for more work. Basis Stepney is based on the real engine of the same name, an LB&SCR A1X Class "Terrier" 0-6-0T tank locomotive. Livery Stepney is painted in the goldenrod locomotive livery of the LB&SCR, formally known as "Stroudley's Improved Engine Green". In 2010, He was painted in "Bluebell Black". On January 14th, 2012, Stepney made an "only-morning" appearance in BR Lined Black with "cycling lion" crest and his BR number, 32655, for a special photographic charter. He carried the same BR Lined Black livery again on April 17th, 2012 for another photographic charter; this time though with the later "ferret and dartboard" crest. He returned to "Bluebell Black" in time for his visit to the National Railway Museum's "Railfest" in the first week of June 2012. As of August 2014, he has returned to his famous "Improved Engine Green" livery, officially being released to the public in May 2015. Appearances Voice Actors * Keith Wickham (Thomas-saurus Rex read-along app) * Bin Shimada (Japan; fourth and fifth seasons) Trivia * Stepney's model was on display at Drayton Manor until the summer of 2015. His front coupling was missing in 2014. * Stepney is, as of 29th March 2014, withdrawn from service, following the failure of his main steam pipe. He was repainted from his British Railways black livery with red lining, which replicates that which he carried upon his arrival at the Bluebell Railway in May 1960. He now carries his original London, Brighton and South Coast Railway "Improved Engine Green Livery". A future overhaul has not been entirely ruled out. * Alec Baldwin gives Stepney a Cockney accent. This may have been intentional, as Stepney is a region of East London and the inhabitants of that area, amongst others, were known as Cockneys. * The prototype of Stepney's 1996 Wooden Railway model has the original face and magnets of Thomas. * When the president of the Bluebell Railway Bernard Holden MBE died, aged 104 on October 4th, 2012, Stepney headed his funeral train on the 16th, due to being the first engine that the railway rescued. In 2014, Stepney also headed the funeral train for Jack Owen, who was his ex-driver. * At one time, the Official Website incorrectly stated that Stepney was a narrow gauge engine. Stepney was also incorrectly stated to be narrow gauge in Railway Rhymes. He was also included in a Take Along Narrow Gauge Gift Pack. * In the Spanish dub of the show, he is known as the Hyacinth engine instead of the Bluebell engine. In the Dutch dub, he is known as the Violet engine. * Both of Stepney's appearances in the seventh season were made up of stock footage. * In the television series, Stepney has had several whistles. In some scenes of "Thomas and Stepney", Stepney had Smudger's whistle. In the rest of his appearances of season 4, he has a different one. In "Stepney Gets Lost", Percy and the Haunted Mine, Edward the Really Useful Engine, and Trusty Rusty, he shared the same whistle sound as Skarloey. Then in "Rosie's Funfair Special", it became a slightly higher pitch version of Thomas'. * Stepney was featured in the music video for Tracy Ullman's "Move Over Darling" in 1983. * In the fourth season episode Thomas and Stepney, in some illustrations in books, and for some of his merchandise models, Stepney is known to wearing two LNER lamps. Merchandise * ERTL (discontinued) * Wooden Railway (reissued in a three-pack; discontinued) * Take Along (discontinued) * Take-n-Play * Motor Road and Rail (discontinued) * TrackMaster (discontinued) * Hornby (Original release 2004 - discontinued, re-release 2012 - discontinued) * Trading Cards (discontinued) * My Thomas Story Library (discontinued) * Thomas Engine Collection Series (discontinued) * Thomas Town (discontinued) * De Agostini (discontinued) * Nakayoshi (discontinued) * Wind-up Trains (Japan only) * Pocket Fantasy (discontinued) * Brio (discontinued) Gallery File:Stepney'sSpecialRS1.png|Stepney and Edward in the Railway Series File:BluebellsofEnglandRS4.png|Stepney and the diesels File:Stepney'sSpecialRS6.png|Stepney's driver exchanging tablets File:TrainStopsPlayRS2.png File:TrainStopsPlayRS6.png|Stepney and Caroline File:BowledOutRS4.png|Stepney and Duck pushing The Diesel File:BowledOutRS5.png|Stepney with his controller File:BowledOutRS6.png File:RustytotheRescue37.png|Rusty and Stepney File:RustytotheRescue61.png|Stepney in the fourth season File:TrainStopsPlay1.png File:TrainStopsPlay41.png|Stepney's driver File:TrainStopsPlay75.png File:BowledOut29.png|Duck and Stepney File:BowledOut35.png File:StepneyGetsLost11.png|Stepney in the fifth season File:StepneyGetsLost15.png|Stepney with Mavis File:StepneyGetsLost47.png|"Oh, no! We're in the scrapyards!" File:Boo,Boo,Choo,Choo.jpg|Stepney sleeping File:Boo,Boo,Choo,Choo13.png|Stepney in his shed File:StepneyGetsLost37.png|Stepney's cab File:PercyandtheHauntedMine8.png|Stepney at Callan station File:EdwardtheVeryUsefulEngine8.jpg File:EdwardtheVeryUsefulEngine33.png|Stepney passes the windmill File:EdwardtheVeryUsefulEngine31.png|Stepney in the sixth season File:Rosie'sFunfairSpecial41.png|Stepney in the twelfth season File:Rosie'sFunfairSpecial45.png File:Rosie'sFunfairSpecial43.png|Stepney's whistle File:Rosie'sFunfairSpecial47.png File:Rosie'sFunfairSpecial49.png File:Rosie'sFunfairSpecial22.PNG|Stepney with a CGI face File:Stepneywithnameboard.png|Stepney with nameboard File:Stepney'sNamecardTracksideTunes1.png|Stepney's Trackside Tunes Namecard from Stepney Gets Lost File:Stepney'sNamecardTracksideTunes2.png File:SteamRoasted5.jpg|Stepney in the magazines File:StepneyThomas2002Event.jpeg File:StepneyTVModel.jpg|Stepney's model File:StepneyModel1.png| File:StepneyDraytonManor.jpg|Stepney's model at Drayton Manor File:DraytonManorStepney.JPG File:StepneyModel4.jpeg File:StepneyDraytonManor7.jpg File:StepneyDraytonManor2.png|Stepney in 2015 (Note: His coupling is missing) File:StepneyPromo.jpg|Stepney Take-N-Play promo File:StepneybyRichardCourtney.png|Stepney illustrated by Richard Courtney File:StepneyPromoArt.png|Promotional artwork File:Stepneyinhiscurrentlivery.jpg|The real Stepney in black livery File:Stepney2015.jpg|The real Stepney in 2015 File:StepneyWithAFace.jpg|The real Stepney with a face File:StepneyBluebellRailwayIllustration.png|An illustration of Stepney on the Bluebell Railway Merchandise Gallery File:ERTLStepney.jpg|ERTL File:ERTLStepney1995Packaging.jpg|Original ERTL packaging File:WoodenRailwayStepney.jpg|Wooden Railway prototype File:1996WoodenRailwayStepney.jpg|1996 Wooden Railway File:NewWoodenRailwayStepney.JPG|2003 Wooden Railway File:WoodenRailwayStepneywithMuseumCars.jpg|Wooden Railway Stepney with Museum Cars File:WoodenRailwayStepneywithMuseumCarsprototype.jpg|Wooden Railway Stepney with Museum Cars prototype File:TOMYStepney.jpg|Motor Road and Rail File:TrackmasterStepney.jpg|TrackMaster File:TrackMasterStepneyAndTroublesomeTruck.jpg|TrackMaster with truck File:Take-AlongStepney.png|Take Along File:Take-n-PlayStepney.png|Take-n-play prototype File:Take-N-PlayStepneyPrototype.jpg|Take-n-play File:BrioStepney.JPG|Brio File:HornbyStepney.png|Hornby File:DiAgostiniStepney.PNG|De Agostini File:NakayoshiStepney.jpg|Nakayoshi File:BandaiTECStepney.png|Bandai TEC File:Wind-upStepney.jpg|Wind-up File:Wind-upClearStepney.jpg|Clear Wind-up File:StepneyPocketFantasy.jpg|Pocket Fantasy File:MyThomasStoryLibraryStepney.png|Story Library book File:StepneyStoryLibraryBook2.png|Story Library book alternative cover File:Stepney2011StoryLibrarybook.jpg|2011 Story Library book File:StepneyTradingCard.png|Trading Card |undefined|link=undefined See also * Images of Stepney External links For more information, visit Stepney's page on the Bluebell Railway website. Category:Male characters Category:Thomas and Friends characters Category:Thomas and Friends steam locomotives Category:Characters Category:Films, TV Shows And Wildlife Wiki